During the placement season, a panel asked a guy, "Cite an instance when you had to take a tough decision". The guy replied, "After my 12th, I cleared both IITJEE and ISI. I did not know which institute to join for my graduation". The person was rejected, one of the many possible reasons being the fact that he had cited an instance which could, in no way, be considered a "tough" decision, because all the options in front of him were "good", a win-win situation.
At that point, I mirrored the views of the panel, for a win-win situation can not be a tough decision. There are tougher cases, where you might lose something in each of the alternatives. But something that I did not consider, and perhaps neither did the panel, was the fact that the decision was not just about IIT and ISI. Not just about engineering and statistics. It was much much more. It was about what your parents expect and want from you. It was about standing up to your peers. A person who has spent a large part of his life with his head buried in books was suddenly expected to make the biggest decision in his life, without any heads up, without any previous knowledge, and he was expected to do well in that too. Still, the society says it was not a tough decision, and society is an honorable institution!
Why this change all of a sudden? Well because now I face a similar situation! I have just cleared CAT, one of the toughest entrances in India in the PG level and have got calls for interview from 5 of the 6 IIMs. Also, thanks to my IIT degree, I have secured a lucrative job in Adobe Systems India, one of the world leaders in Software Industry. I have even applied to some universities in US for admission to PhD. Now, I have to decide! What do I do? I am expected to come out with a list of my priorities. And the factors are not simply academic or financial. There are social implications, a lot of them. Some of my relatives are of an opinion that I am too young for a job and must go for higher studies. Others think, I am too old for studies and its high time I started earning something! My mother thinks I should go for a PhD - may be because "Dr. Rahul" sounds cooler than "Rahul". My father thinks I should go to the IIMs. Even if they offer only a diploma and not a degree, they are the best of their kind in India, and an IIM graduate would attract higher compensation than an IIT graduate. Some of my friends think ditching Adobe would be a blasphemy. As a result, I have a Java book open in my PC right now - in order to prepare for Adobe. A few tabs of Firefox stay dedicated to GDPI tips and tricks, while the others are university applications. I even have my Statement of Purpose open, receiving its final touches.
So I know what my parents, relatives and friends want. But something that I fail to understand till date is what I want. While in school, people told me to come to IIT, so I came. In IIT, people asked me to secure a top job, so I did. I saw others giving CAT, and learnt that I should give it too, I did, and I cleared. I was made to understand that I should definitely try for a PhD, as that is what a true engineer would do. So, I am trying that too.
Hence, what I do is not necessarily what I want to do. But what other options do I have? In an attempt to satisfy everyone, I have perhaps left behind my choice years ago. All I want to do now is to run away, far far away from all these madness, these rush, these demands. I want to live a free man, who does not give a damn to what others say and want.
Am I being an Escapist?
At that point, I mirrored the views of the panel, for a win-win situation can not be a tough decision. There are tougher cases, where you might lose something in each of the alternatives. But something that I did not consider, and perhaps neither did the panel, was the fact that the decision was not just about IIT and ISI. Not just about engineering and statistics. It was much much more. It was about what your parents expect and want from you. It was about standing up to your peers. A person who has spent a large part of his life with his head buried in books was suddenly expected to make the biggest decision in his life, without any heads up, without any previous knowledge, and he was expected to do well in that too. Still, the society says it was not a tough decision, and society is an honorable institution!
Why this change all of a sudden? Well because now I face a similar situation! I have just cleared CAT, one of the toughest entrances in India in the PG level and have got calls for interview from 5 of the 6 IIMs. Also, thanks to my IIT degree, I have secured a lucrative job in Adobe Systems India, one of the world leaders in Software Industry. I have even applied to some universities in US for admission to PhD. Now, I have to decide! What do I do? I am expected to come out with a list of my priorities. And the factors are not simply academic or financial. There are social implications, a lot of them. Some of my relatives are of an opinion that I am too young for a job and must go for higher studies. Others think, I am too old for studies and its high time I started earning something! My mother thinks I should go for a PhD - may be because "Dr. Rahul" sounds cooler than "Rahul". My father thinks I should go to the IIMs. Even if they offer only a diploma and not a degree, they are the best of their kind in India, and an IIM graduate would attract higher compensation than an IIT graduate. Some of my friends think ditching Adobe would be a blasphemy. As a result, I have a Java book open in my PC right now - in order to prepare for Adobe. A few tabs of Firefox stay dedicated to GDPI tips and tricks, while the others are university applications. I even have my Statement of Purpose open, receiving its final touches.
So I know what my parents, relatives and friends want. But something that I fail to understand till date is what I want. While in school, people told me to come to IIT, so I came. In IIT, people asked me to secure a top job, so I did. I saw others giving CAT, and learnt that I should give it too, I did, and I cleared. I was made to understand that I should definitely try for a PhD, as that is what a true engineer would do. So, I am trying that too.
Hence, what I do is not necessarily what I want to do. But what other options do I have? In an attempt to satisfy everyone, I have perhaps left behind my choice years ago. All I want to do now is to run away, far far away from all these madness, these rush, these demands. I want to live a free man, who does not give a damn to what others say and want.
Am I being an Escapist?
